Hanoi (VNA) – Authorities will﷽ persuade religious establishments to suspend activities as part of measures to contain the spread of COVID-19, an official has said.

Facing complex developments of the COVID-19 pandemic and 36 infection cases linked with the Revival Ekklesia Mission, a Protestant congregation, in Ho Chi Minh City, Vu Chien Thang, Deputy Minister of Home Affairs and Chairman of the Government's Committee for Religious Affairs, appealed to religious organisations and their followers to apply pandemic prevention and control measures. Thang told the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) on May 27 that he appreciated religious organisations standing side by side with all-level administrations in the COVID-19 combat, which reflects their high sense of responsibility towards the nation and helps with anti-pandemic efforts. Leaders of 43 religious organisations have pledged to comply with the Government’s directives on pandemic prevention and control, and many have instructed their sub-divisions, dignitaries, and followers to minimise religious activities and practices with mass gatherings, according to the official. Regarding the 36 infection cases linked with the Revival Ekklesia Mission in HCM City, Thang said this mission is a Protestant sect that operates independently from other Protestant organisations, and its religious activities have only taken place at the registered place with 29 regular members. Local relevant agencies are speedily tracing contacts to identify sources of virus transmission and work out plans to thoroughly deal with this hotbed, he noted. The fourth wave of COVID-19 infections is developing complicatedly and coincides with the time some religions in Vietnam like Buddhism, Catholicism, Caodaism, and Islam are preparing for their major events, he said, calling on religious sects to seriously apply social distancing, conduct religious practices online, and not hold mass gatherings to prevent the spread of the disease. As of May 28 morning, Vietnam confirmed a total of 6,356 COVID-19 cases, including 4,864 domestic ones, with the number of infections reported since April 27, when the fourth coronavirus wave hit the country, amounting to 3,294. The death toll stood at 46 while the recoveries numbered 2,853, according to the Ministry of Health./.